I wish to call attention to the way in which Galway College has been treated in this matter. Galway College has been treated in the most ruthless and high-handed manner, and this is strongly resented by the people concerned. Money and help have been lavished on Dublin and Cork University Colleges, and neither of these institutions has been treated in the niggardly way in which Galway has been treated. Neither is in such financial straits. Though far from being rich, they are not on the edge of bankruptcy, like Galway. Galway professors are obliged to eke out their salaries by retaining the students' fees, a method which was declared by the governing authorities of the college to be a very unsatisfactory method, and which was considered wrong in regard to other colleges. The process was very much disapproved of by the professors themselves, but they had no choice in the matter.
The county councils of Connaught, the poorest of the provinces, were compelled to contribute to the funds of the college under threat that it would be allowed to be starved out. Like other counties in other provinces, they gave scholarships, but they were asked in addition to subscribe to the upkeep of the college. That money had been used as a bonus for the professors, who were receiving such very bad salaries. I will mention some of the salaries. The highest salary, not including bonus, is £455. The salaries descend as far as £70 and £50. A great many of the salaries are fixed at £200. Those salaries were increased by the bonus made up from the fees of students, a thing which is not done in other places. Elsewhere the bonus is made up of contributions by the State.
Now, to show how badly they have been treated, I will instance some of the grants. Dublin is granted £32,000, Cork £20,000, Galway £12,000. There are additional grants—Dublin £34,000, Cork £20,000, Galway £6,800. In the case of Galway there is another £2,000 added for some special reason. Special grants are given—Dublin £25,000, Cork £15,000, Galway nil. Capital grants are distributed as follows—Dublin £25,000, Cork £15,000, Galway nil. This college is in a desperate state. The people around the West are very much attached to this college, and are extremely angry that it is being treated in this way. It really means bankruptcy.
There are excuses being made. One is that the building was not ready for the purposes of an agricultural college or for an Irish college. I see Cork is being given money to erect buildings. Why should not Galway be given money, too? Money was given out for various purposes in respect to other colleges, and why should Galway be excepted? These excuses are being made merely to put off the matter, and this college is going to be allowed to become extinct. Once this Bill is passed, nothing can be done and the Minister will always find excuses in future to the effect that they are too hard up to get this college ready. That is the usual form of excuse given, and I think the time has come when something should be done for Galway such as is done for Dublin and Cork.
No definite promise has been made that I know of. In the West we look on the case as a very serious one. I hope that the West is going to be industrialised when the Shannon scheme comes into effect. I look forward with great hope to that, and I think that we all look forward to Galway College to give us engineers, chemists, and people of that kind when the scheme is in operation. So far, however, nothing has been done despite the fact that very strong representations have been made with regard to the college. I would ask the Minister to make a statement on the matter and to say that immediate steps will be taken to relieve the immediate necessities of Galway College.
